Joe Torre

NEW YORK -- Joe Torre and George Steinbrenner are going to grow old together. Torre and the New York Yankees agreed yesterday to a $19.2 million, three-year contract extension through 2007, reaching the deal a season after his relationship with Steinbrenner soured so much it threw the manager's future in doubt. "I'm glad to be back," Torre said before the Yankees lost to the Chicago White Sox. "Last year, I wasn't sure during the course of the year if the Yankees had had enough of me. " Torre, 63, will remain as a consultant to the Yankees for up to six years after he's finished managing, at between...

When was it that we were all bemoaning the fact that this latest well-hyped confrontation between the Athens and Sparta of baseball (which is which depends on your point of view) was a major dud? Oh, that's right. It was 10 hours, 51 minutes, and 26 innings of baseball ago. You thought Sunday's 12-inning 6-4/David Ortiz/Beating Mariano game was an epic? Nah. It was the lounge act to last night's headliner, a 14-inning masterpiece culminating in yet another game-winning hit by Ortiz, this one a fisted blooper to center after fouling off five nasty Esteban Loaiza two-strike pitches.

CHICAGO -- Roger Clemens still hopes to make his 2007 Yankees debut against the Pittsburgh Pirates Saturday after an MRI showed he had a scar tissue injury in his right groin. Clemens had originally planned to start last night against the White Sox. He scratched himself from the outing because of what the Yankees said then was a fatigued groin, an injury that he first felt during a minor league outing May 28. "We knew [the MRI] wasn't going to show anything," manager Joe Torre said.

NEW YORK - As Tigers manager Jim Leyland walked into the Yankee Stadium interview room, he quipped, "Heck of a game. " That was one way of putting it. Instead of making decisions in Game 1 of the American League Division Series between the Yankees and Tigers last night, the managers were restructuring their pitching plans for the series after the opener was suspended following a 1-hour-17-minute rain delay in the second inning. The teams got through the top of the inning, with the score 1-1. The game will resume tonight at 8:37, with Game 2 rescheduled for 3:07 p.m. tomorrow.

NEW YORK -- Andy Pettitte tossed a gem, Jason Giambi provided the power, and the Yankees got back on track with an efficient win over Detroit. Pettitte pitched eight excellent innings to win his fourth straight start and Giambi homered twice, sending New York to a 6-1 victory over the Tigers last night. "Andy really stepped up for us tonight," Giambi said. "He's been the guy to go to. " Andy Phillips hit a two-run double and Alex Rodriguez had an RBI double for the Yankees, who had lost three straight after winning nine of 10. Joe Torre earned his 2,041st victory as a manager, passing Walter Alston...

BALTIMORE -- The list of big-name players unavailable to New York Yankees manager Joe Torre was staggering. Alex Rodriguez. Hideki Matsui. Gary Sheffield. Mariano Rivera. None of them was healthy enough to face the Baltimore Orioles last night. Derek Jeter was in the lineup, though, and he provided two clutch hits to lift New York to a 6-5 victory. Returning from a two-day absence because of a hand injury, Jeter put New York ahead with a run-scoring single in the seventh inning, then drove in the tiebreaking run in the ninth to cap a 3-for-4 night.

Don't read too much into the results of the last three nights. Joe Torre won't. The Yankees skipper didn't leave here feeling much different in terms of the Big Picture than if the Red Sox had swept. "It's too early," he said after last night's 8-6 victory gave his team the 2-1 series triumph. "It's just business as usual to me, more of a professional approach. We've got so much more left, and there's so much work to do. You can't allow yourself to say, 'Hey, look at what we did.' It's not a healthy thing to do. " One thing the Yankees did was win despite...

Derek Jeter hit a leadoff home run, Jon Lieber pitched into the eighth inning, and the New York Yankees clinched their 10th consecutive trip to the postseason with a 7-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays yesterday at Yankee Stadium. "It's nice, but we expect that coming in," Alex Rodriguez said. John Flaherty also homered for the Yankees (96-57), who are assured of no worse than a wild-card berth. They're guaranteed of finishing among the top two in the AL East, and no team can finish second in the AL Central or AL West with more than 95 wins.

After two days of much-hyped meetings in Tampa, owner George Steinbrenner and the Yankees still won't say whether they plan to bring back Joe Torre for a 13th season as their manager. "We hold Joe Torre in the highest regard and, obviously, that's why we're taking the time . . . to determine what's best for us as we move forward and whether he's a part of that or not," general manager Brian Cashman said yesterday outside Legends Field, the team's spring training home.

Don Mattingly has been making managerial moves with the New York Yankees for several seasons - in his head. "I've heard that experience thing come up a lot," he said, "but in my own mind I've been managing for the last four years, and to be honest with you, as a player you're playing along the whole time. " After four seasons as a coach, Mattingly was interviewed yesterday to replace departed manager Joe Torre . Yankees broadcaster Joe Girardi interviewed a day earlier, and first base coach Tony Pena is due to speak with team officials today.

Joe Torre sat at a microphone wearing pinstripes for the first time in nearly four years, Yankees cap resting precariously high on his head as it had for 12 seasons, and blurted out the answer to a question before it was finished being asked. “No, I’m not doing that!’’ the 70-year-old Torre said Sunday, as he was being asked whether he had any desire to follow 80-year-old Jack McKeon back to the manager’s chair. Lou Piniella, who joined Torre as a first-timer at the 65th Yankees Old Timers’ Day, was equally emphatic about being satisfied with his decision to retire from his job as a big...

NEW YORK — For a night, the Yankees’ pennant push was secondary. “There’s not too many monuments here,’’ captain Derek Jeter said. “That’s what you remember the most. I mean, the game’s important, but it was a special night out there.’’ Jeter and his teammates helped honor George Steinbrenner with a monumental win. After the Yankees unveiled a huge monument to their late owner, Jeter singled home the go-ahead run in the sixth inning. Curtis Granderson followed with his second home run of the night, a three-run drive that helped New York to...

NEW YORK - They emerged in pairs and threes from the back room in the extravagant clubhouse at Yankee Stadium one day last week, roaring with laughter. We are told they have these moments often. "That's the thing," said right fielder Nick Swisher, who was traded to the Yankees from the White Sox in the offseason. "It's completely different than anything I thought it would ever be. "You hear stories about the Yankees and how it's very corporate. It's not like that at all. And I think that starts from the top - owners, general manager, staff, players,...

FORT MYERS, Fla. - When Terry Francona sees Joe Torre here this afternoon in Dodger Blue, he's likely to do something he couldn't have imagined when Torre still wore pinstripes. "I'm glad he's in the National League," Francona said. "I feel like I can put my arm around him. He'll probably start yelling at me. " Such a fraternal gesture would have been out of place, Francona said, in the crucible of the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry. "I never went out there to the batting cage," Francona said.

New Dodgers manager Joe Torre sounded hopeful that Alex Rodriguez could join him in Los Angeles. "It's possible," Torre said yesterday, repeating that phrase twice as a small grin crept across his face. "You've got four or five clubs maybe that figure to be in the sweepstakes. There aren't a lot of clubs that are going to be able to pay the money. " Torre walked away from the New York Yankees after 12 seasons as manager last month. Rodriguez also cut ties with the club, opting out of his $252 million, 10-year contract and becoming the biggest prize on the...

General manager Ned Colletti acknowledged yesterday he had spoken with Joe Torre about managing the Los Angeles Dodgers. While Colletti insisted they had not agreed on a contract, he indicated the former New York Yankees manager was the leading candidate to replace Grady Little , who resigned Tuesday. "We've had some conversations with him very recently," Colletti said. Colletti was quick to point out that other candidates were also being considered. Teams are generally directed to interview at least one minority candidate for open managerial jobs, but the Dodgers...

Florida Marlins center fielder Juan Pierre dislocated his right pinkie yesterday while sliding headfirst on a steal attempt in Jupiter, Fla. Pierre's return to the World Series champions is uncertain. He could come back within a week if the injury is not too serious, or he might miss up to six weeks if there's ligament damage. Pierre, who led the majors last season with 65 stolen bases, was taken to the hospital for X-rays, which confirmed the dislocation. He is scheduled to see a hand specialist today.

While Yankees officials prepared to gather in Tampa to determine the fate of manager Joe Torre , Alex Rodriguez was in California to consult with agent Scott Boras on his negotiating strategy. Rodriguez and Boras began talks Sunday, and the agent said the star third baseman will remain in California for several days. "We plan to spend a lot of time together in the next week," Boras said yesterday. Rodriguez has until 10 days after the World Series ends to decide whether to opt out of his record $252 million, 10-year contract and become a free agent.

The pinstriped standard is 26 World Series championships, including 10 won by the Yankees between 1947 and 1962. That was baseball's definition of a dynasty back when players were bound to one team for life. With that dominance, the Yankees became the most-watched, most-admired, most-feared, and most-resented team. What qualifies as a dynasty now? "I would think three in a row, something like that," said Philadelphia general manager Pat Gillick. "It's very difficult. Two in a row is a doable.

Don Mattingly has been making managerial moves with the New York Yankees for several seasons - in his head. "I've heard that experience thing come up a lot," he said, "but in my own mind I've been managing for the last four years, and to be honest with you, as a player you're playing along the whole time. " After four seasons as a coach, Mattingly was interviewed yesterday to replace departed manager Joe Torre . Yankees broadcaster Joe Girardi interviewed a day earlier, and first base coach Tony Pena is due to speak with team officials...